In 2013 Matěj Peňáz won his first title, taking gold in the WAKO World Cup. Penaz also went on to win the WAKO European gold medal and gold in the WAKO World Championship. His success in kickboxing eventually led to him signing with Glory. There he went 3-1, with an overall kickboxing record of 23-3. Penaz fought out his Glory contract and is now in MMA.
My thoughts on him in MMA: Penaz is already proven in MMA. He’s 5-0 as a pro and won the Oktagon Underground tournament as an amateur. Penaz has been tested with his takedown defense and has defended well. He’s even had significant top control and ended his second pro fight by ground and pound. Penaz is of course a dangerous guy on the feet and watching him you get it right away. He’s long, fast, throws sniping straight punches, and is deadly with the legs. I’m really high on Penaz.
Dylan Salvador competed in muay thai and kickboxing for years before he transitioned over into MMA. He’s 4-1 in MMA and 64-16-2 in kickboxing/muay thai. Salvador is a former two-weight WAKO World champion and fought five times for Glory. He won the Glory lightweight contender tournament in 2016. Salvador has a kickboxing win over UFC contender Giga Chikadze.
My thoughts on him in MMA: Salvador has competed long enough in MMA to get a good read on him. His sole loss in MMA was a split decision and he arguably won that. Unlike the majority of this list Salvador won’t shy away from wrestling and using his grappling. In fact, three of his four wins have come by submission. On the feet he brings the pressure and will chop away with his kicks over and over. Salvador probably makes it to a big promotion sooner rather than later.
